Cannabis food and drinks to be 2019 top dinning trends, top chefs say - via USAToday

Glazed & Confuzed donuts founder and CEO Josh Schwab tops a donut frosted with CBD-infused glaze with a candied hemp leaf at his shop in the Stanley Marketplace in Aurora.
TREVOR HUGHES, TREVOR HUGHES-USA TODAY NETWORK

TREVOR HUGHES | USA TODAY | January 10, 2019

DENVER – Sprinkled on donuts, mixed into milkshakes or infused into olive oil, make no mistake: Cannabis is coming to a kitchen near you.

Chefs across the country say cannabis-infused food and drinks are the top two dining trends they expect to see unfold in 2019, although we’re not talking about food that will get you “high" – these are products made with "CBD," a non-psychoactive compound extracted from cannabis plants that enthusiasts say offers health benefits while tempting the palate.

​"I'm telling you, 75 percent of my clientele is doctors, nurses and lawyers," said Josh Schwab, 45, whose Denver-area Glazed & Confuzed donut shop makes a CBD-frosted donut topped with a candied hemp leaf, selling upwards of 30 each weekend day. "You get all the relaxation without the head high. It kinda just takes the edge off."

Jonathan Eppers, 35, has seen the rocketing CBD interest firsthand: Launched just a year ago from LA, his CBD-infused Vybes drinks are now available in 19 states, including New York and Florida, in flavors ranging from blueberry mint to blackberry lavender.

"I was tired of living every day anxious. I wanted to be more present and calm. That’s what CBD does for me," said Eppers, whose fledgling company sold more than 1.1 million bottles last year.

​The survey of chefs was part of an annual poll conducted for the National Restaurant Association, which checked with more than 650 professional chefs. Of those, 77 percent said CBD drinks are the No. 1 trend they see for 2019, followed by CBD foods.Zero-waste kitchens were the third top trend identified by the chefs, who are all members of the American Culinary Federation, and who have previously singled out artisanal cheese, house-made condiments and savory desserts.

And heads-up: These same chefs say pretzels in desserts are on their way out.

Hudson Riehle, the restaurant association's senior research director, said it's still too early to tell if CBD is just a fad or will fade into history like molecular gastronomy or meals served in mason jars. U.S. restaurants are an $850 billion industry that employs about 15 million people, and the daily conversations chefs have with customers help inform the survey, said Riehle, 65.

Because CBD products are often derived from hemp, which is usually imported but legal nationally, you can expect to see CBD on menus across the United States, although specific regulations still vary.

And while there's still relatively peer-reviewed research available on CBD's health benefits, its fans say it can help treat insomnia, anxiety, pain and seizures. Others say it provides mild relaxation without intoxication. (Marijuana-infused foods are a very different story.)

At Colorado's The Cereal Box, where customers can add a taste-free $3 scoop of CBD powder to their cereal, coffee or milkshake, co-owner Lori Hofer said she spends a lot of time explaining the difference between CBD and THC, the marijuana compound that gets you high.

She said Colorado customers tend to know more about CBD because the state's been at the forefront of marijuana legalization for so many years.

A sign on a display at a Denver-area pet store lists claimed health benefits of CBD, a component of hemp and marijuana plants.
TREVOR HUGHES, USA TODAY